Inside The New York Botanical Garden
Posted in Photography on November 3 2010, by Plant Talk
Since our Monday morning eye candy was met with such enthusiastic approval, we figured, “Well, why not give the people what they’re so obviously craving?” So, here it is: Your new, daily dose of Garden beauty. Enjoy.
Morning on the Bronx River near the Stone Mill (photo by Ivo M. Vermeulen).
Posted in Wildlife on September 29 2010, by Plant Talk
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Linda R. Cox is Executive Director of the Bronx River Alliance and Bronx River Administrator for the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation. Photos: Steve Zack for the Bronx River Alliance. |
On an overcast evening last month, five canoes set off on the cool, still waters of the Bronx River amid the shaded forests of the Bronx Zoo and The New York Botanical Garden. We were four Bronx River Alliance staff and seven intrepid adventurers, all on the search for José the Beaver.
José, named in honor of Congressman José E. Serrano for his unstinting support of the Bronx River’s revitalization, has lived on the Bronx River since 2006. Nonetheless, he is seldom seen. Even Josue Garcia and Miguel Rodriguez, who led hundreds of paddlers down the river this summer, had not seen him. But this time we had chosen José’s favorite hour for activity—dusk. Our hopes were high. Five wildlife biologists were with us to help witness José’s life on the river.
We paddled upstream, passing under Fordham Road into the Botanical Garden, and there he was, floating in the water under a willow tree. With the top of his head and back visible, José swam away from the tree, gave two mighty thwacks with his tail, and dived under the water, suddenly gone, invisible.
Posted in NYBG in the News, Video on September 1 2009, by Plant Talk
Carol Capobianco is Editorial Content Manager at The New York Botanical Garden.
The Bronx River runs through The New York Botanical Garden on its way from Westchester County to the East River and is a primary reason the Garden was sited at this location in 1895. Over the years, the Garden’s 250-acre lush landscape has protected a segment of this urban river, while other sections have been negatively impacted by development and heavy land use.
But the Bronx River as a whole has been on the mend in recent times, thanks to the efforts of many organizations and government agencies. People in canoes and beavers and other wildlife have returned. On Thursday, New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo visited the Garden, along with Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz, Jr., and others, to award funding to NYBG and six other entities for pollution-control projects.
The Garden, which received $349,599, will use the funding for a “green infrastructure” demonstration project designed to reduce and treat storm water discharge to the Bronx River. The Garden will install permeable pavement, a tree well that captures storm water, and a pipe outflow with cascading pools. It will also stabilize the shoreline and restore it with the planting of native trees, shrubs, and groundcovers.
In his address, Cuomo particularly congratulated Botanical Garden President and CEO Gregory Long for his work. “He has done such a fantastic job,” Cuomo said. “The Garden is a real beautiful gem and treasure for the Bronx and for the entire state.”
Garden Receives Funding for Bronx River Protection from The New York Botanical Garden on Vimeo.